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The To-Do List

The To Do List is being billed as Superbad with a female protagonist - Aubrey Plaza, who I enjoyed in Safety Not Guaranteed last year. Playing a nerd (which I'm afraid she's now being typecast into), she finds out that she's way behind as compared to her friends on the spectrum of sexual activities, and she makes a list of things she wants to "accomplish" before she leaves for college in the fall. This film will not be for everyone, as some people at my screening even walked out within the first twenty minutes, but if you're a fan of the American Pie series or like those types of movies, then you will like this one.

Brandy Klark (Plaza) is just now realizing she's woefully inexperienced with guys, and vows to change that during her last summer at home. Her sister, Amber (Rachel Bilson), is engaged to a loser, but is still able to give her advice, as are her friends, Fiona and Wendy (Alia Shawcat and Sarah Steele), who support her in this endeavor. Brandy has her sights set on the ultimate prize: the hot lifeguard at the pool she's working at for the summer, Rusty Waters (Scott Porter) - the lifeguard, that is, not the pool. She also doesn't realize that her friend Cameron (Johnny Simmons) has a major crush on her, and she starts checking off some of the first things on her list with him; she gets into trouble later, though, when he finds the list and gets upset with her.

Plaza was great in this role but I'm a little afraid that she's going to end up being typecast - she always plays the "sarcastic" or "dorky one" in movies now, even in films like Monsters University where she's voice talent. Connie Britton was funny as Brandy's mom, as well; she tries to be frank with Brandy since Brandy is always honest with her, and sometimes things come out rather bluntly, like when Brandy asks her at the breakfast table how old she was when she lost her virginity. Rachel Bilson, as Brandy's sister, was kind of annoying and shrill in this film, but I think that's how the role was supposed to be played. Also keep an eye out for Andy Samberg in a cameo as a rocker whom Brandy uses to accomplish one of the things on her list.

In spite of its hilarious moments, I have to give The To Do List a Maybe rather than a Yes. There were definitely parts were the movie dragged, and even though its runtime is short, it sometimes felt long throughout. What's interesting is that this film is most likely targeted at the 17-25 demographic, yet it takes place in 1993, so teens and young adults might not get all the '90s references throughout (which I loved, by the way - everything from VHS tapes to Zack Morris). Either that or their demographic is more the 25-40 mindset, in which case it will probably do well at the box office - fans of Plaza should attend in droves, at the very least.

The To Do List is in theaters today, July 26th, and is rated R with a runtime of 100 minutes. 3.5 stars out of 5.

So we've all been there ... that time when you're on an important phone call, and then the call drops. Or even when you need to use the internet on your smartphone, only to realize that you're at your data limit for the month.

I drive all over the metro Detroit area for movie screenings; because of this, most of the time I know where I'm going, but sometimes, I'm in an unfamiliar area or at an unfamiliar theater and I need GPS to know how to get there and back.

A few months ago, I was headed to the AMC Forum (Sterling Heights area) and I wanted to know the best way to get home from there. My phone kept stalling ... and stalling ... and then the Maps app crashed! Gah! I was extremely frustrated. I was finally able to re-start the phone and get safely home, but it TOOK. SO. LONG. Had the Maps app worked the fir…

*Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. As long-time readers of this blog surely know, I travel quite a lot. A few years ago, I only took about 2-3 trips per year, not including trips in the state of Michigan (Grand Haven weekends, etc.), but this past year, I was fortunate in that I was able to travel very frequently.

I recently heard about a new travel site, DirectHotels.com, which is similar to Kayak.com, in that it searches all of the other travel sites (Orbitz, Expedia, etc.) to find the best deals for you. I gave it a bit of a test run to see if that is indeed true.

About the site:
DirectHotels.com is a new hotel comparison tool that challenges the big brands. Travelers can easily compare all the travel sites in one place to find the cheapest hotel. DirectHotels.com compares over 200 bookings sites, so users can be sure about its accuracy. Using DirectHotels.com means that you will never overpay.

I've written these past two years about Bookstock, a huge used book & media sale that takes place at Laurel Park Place, in Livonia, and it's returning again this year, from Sunday, 4/22 through Sunday, 4/29.Read more about the event over at my book blog! I was finally able to check it out last year, and they had a large mix of books and media (including DVDs, Blu-rays, and records).To learn more about Bookstock, click hereto visit my book blog, or visit their official site here.